Fusion fitness classes, do they work?

Fusion fitness classes, which have gained popularity in the fitness world for being short, intense workouts, can be both efficient and effective.

These hybrid routines range from yoga with leaps and jumps to Pilates with boxing punches. Though odd, the classes are an efficient way to raise the heart rate and burn more calories.

"My belief is to make the most of every second at the gym: get the workout done in the shortest time possible," Stephanie Lauren, a certified group fitness and yoga instructor, told Reuters.

Lauren is the creator of Plyoga fitness, a group fitness class that takes the best of both worlds: the slow stretches of yoga and the explosive jumping and leaping of plyometrics. Plyoga revolves around High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), which combines repeated short bursts of intense exercise followed by short recovery periods.

Strength, endurance, core development, balance and flexibility are among the benefits of the class, she added.

Piloxing, created by Swedish-born Viveca Jensen, blends the stretches and low impact exercises of Pilates with boxing and dancing techniques.

The choreographed routine takes only 60 minutes, starting with an eight-minute warm-up, followed by boxing, a sequence of Pilates moves, dance and then 10 minutes of floor work before a cool-down.

"It's very much an interval training exercise. We want heart rates to go up," said Jensen, who claims that Piloxing can burn 400-900 calories per class.

A 2014 report from the trade association IHRSA (International Health Racquet & Sportsclub Association) found that women are up to two to three times more likely than men to join group exercise classes.

Jessica Matthews, an exercise physiologist at Miramar College in San Diego, said the mixture of fast and slow workout moves is wildly popular, but she still believes in the "old school" method of simply walking or running.

"HIIT shows that in a very short time we can elicit maximum benefits, but that's not saying that anything not HIIT should be tossed," she explained.